My mothers pain and loss restored in my people

 My mother has gone through pain, I feel it physically I see it in her eyes, but my mother is a strong person. 

My mothers childhood is a blur up until she got married to my dad its difficult to decipher what happened to her, I know she lost both her parents when she was very young, her mother maybe when she was like 6 or 7 and her father who was already absent working in Nairobi before she was a teenager maybe at 11/12. 

The pain of her childhood having to care for her younger sister and to live with relatives is something she does not talk much about. 

My mother was married when she was 16/18 (I don't know for sure I just guess from calculations in history) in the year 1956 her marriage to my father was not out of love but out of necessity at the height of the emergency (1952-1958) being an orphaned girl with no protection (male protector) as her elder brother was in Nairobi. My father himself only a few years older was a good choice as he was a student and that meant a good catholic boy, he was also her brothers friend. Once married she was saved from capture by the mau-mau or the Jonnies (British soldiers)

In 1960/61 she had her first baby, for four years in marriage she had no child my father was in and out of their home (she lived with his mother). There after she had nine more in 20 years. 

here are the people from my mothers womb

Njoki named after my paternal grandmother the only one whose birth date is not very clear, born in my grandmothers hut, 

Wanja named after my maternal grandmother born on ...July 1962 also born while my mum lived at my grandmothers house but with my father present and thus her birth was recorded

Maina (Njuguna) named after my paternal grandfather,  born on 1st June 1964  nick named Jogoo after KANU he was born in Nairobi, my father had moved his family to live with him and was a working class

Wambui  named after my dad's sister born on 5th March 1966 born in Nairobi

Kinyua named after my maternal grandmother  born 10th October 1969 born in Kisumu, my father had moved there by then 

Chege named after my fathers brother born 2nd February 1972 also born in Kisumu 

Wanjiru named after my mothers sister born 16th July 1974 born in Kisumu 

Wacuka named after my fathers sister, the only one I met  (yours truly) born 18th September 1976  and 

Mwangi named after my mothers brother (the only uncle I had ) Born 24th September 1979. 

My mother has lost 6 of her  children, I look at her and cannot imagine the pain this woman has endured, only one of my siblings died as a child. when asked how she feels about the whole situation this is what she said. I will put it in a list per child 

Wanja died and left Tony, Alfred Sharon and Kevin she is now a grand mother of 8 from Tony (Wanja, Wacuka and Njoki) from Alfred (Wanja, Mary and Warigia) and From Sharon (Hussein Malik and Saum) Am sure Kevi too will bring me a great grand baby

Jogoo died but left Ann, Lucy and George he is now a grandfather of four from Ann (Wayne and Waylon) and from Lucy (Gianna and Leroy) and waiting for George 

Wambui and Kinyua did not leave anyone but its OK 

Chege died but  left Thelma, Vivian and Patrick he is now a grandfather of 2 Form Thelma (Tamara) and from Vivian (Collins) and waiting for Patrick

Also the three remaining Njoki has 8 grand babies am waiting for Wacuka( who has 2 children Warigia and Riki) and Mwangi who has three children (Warigia Njoki and Wanja) to give me great grand babies 

I lost a lot but God is restoring what I lost, He has already done so in many ways 

I can never argue with that. 

So each day I pray that God shines His face on her and continues to give her long life to make sense of her restoration.  each day I pray for blessings on her generation and that the Holy Spirit puts us together. 

Amen